Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp has revealed time ran out on their bid to land Blackpool captain Charlie Adam.
The Scotland international had been linked with a move away from Bloomfield Road during the transfer window and both Aston Villa and Liverpool failed with bids, with the Seasiders slapping a hefty £10m-plus price-tag on the player.
However, Spurs launched a late raid for Adam and agreed terms with his club but time ran out due to delay in paperwork being signed.
Redknapp told Sky Sports News: “(Chairman) Daniel (Levy) rang me late on and asked if I like Charlie Adam. I said 'yes, he's a fantastic footballer'. He said do you want him, I said 'can we get him?'.
“We pushed on and tried to do it, Daniel was confident he could get it through. It went to the wire but we missed out by minutes.”
He added: “Apparently the boy was definitely up for coming...apparently the chairman couldn't get hold of two shareholders who had to sign the forms as well. It's just one of those things.”